Media: Lost on Location

They came from different countries and backgrounds, but these Honolulu restaurateurs now share the same passions: good food, fresh ingredients and feeding a legion of happy customers.

By Story and photos by Ryan Ozawa

Published: 2007.02.01 12:00 AM

Here are some of the many remarkable roles Hawai‘i has played, including a few new locations you’ll see when Lost returns this month with the second half of its third season.

PittsburghMarin Lane, between Smith Street and Nu‘uanu Avenue, became a snowy Pennsylvania road in “S.O.S.” (season two). The red brick wall of O’Toole’s added a touch of northeastern charm, and tons of ice were hauled in to complete the illusion. This was where endearing dentist Bernard (Sam Anderson) met his future wife, the ever-wise Rose (L. Scott Caldwell).

Seoul
The Contemporary Museum gallery inside the First Hawaiian Center played the stark, cavernous executive office of a Korean Auto Company in “In Translation” (season one). The setting was where Jin (Daniel Dae Kim) was asked by his father-in-law to “deliver messages”—dirty deeds done to hold onto the beautiful Sun (Yunjin Kim). Seoul has also been depicted by the Byodo-In Temple in Kane‘ohe, the Ala Wai Canal, O‘ahu Cemetery in Nu‘uanu, and even—perhaps fittingly—Ke‘eaumoku Street.

Nigeria
The arid, red-dirt-dominated expanse of Waialua has played Nigeria several times, first in “The 23rd Psalm” (season two), in which we saw the hometown of the late, great warlord-turned-priest Mr. Eko (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). A rickety old produce packing house became a dive bar (delaying an asparagus harvest). The dusty airfield where Eko lost his brother Yemi was Dillingham Airfield. Eko succeeded Yemi as the village priest inside historic Keali‘iokamalu Church in Hale‘iwa.

France
The historic Laniakea YWCA building on Richards Street across from ‘Iolani Palace has served as several distant locales, from a mosque in Australia, where Iraqi soldier Sayid (Naveen Andrews) found his brother, to a mental institution in California, where Hurley (Jorge Garcia) learned “the numbers.” This season, the narrow lane behind the YWCA will play Rue St. Simon, a Paris street, and Café Laniakea will co-star as the Le Portail D’Arabie restaurant.

Miami
In an upcoming episode, the John A. Burns School of Medicine in Kaka‘ako plays a fictitious medical library in Florida. Lost made use of laboratories within the school (taking special care to treat “willed bodies” with respect), as well as the tree-lined street out front. Watch for an unforgettable walk-on role by TheBus in this episode!

London
Downtown Honolulu’s Fort Street Mall, just makai of South King Street, received one of the more ambitious transformations for Lost. Over several days and countless work hours, the busy pedestrian thoroughfare be-came a busy, briefly rain-soaked street in England’s capital city. The subterranean entrance to the Satellite City Hall became an entrance to the London Underground. Palm trees were covered with fake bark to create thick oaks. Black taxi cabs and a red telephone booth were among the many touches brought in to complete the setting for an upcoming flashback for the mysterious Desmond (Henry Ian Cusick).

Bangkok
Just a few blocks mauka of where London had stood, Thailand briefly materialized near Hawai‘i Pacific University. The often overlooked Chapin Lane played a narrow, urban street in Bangkok, complete with laundry lines strung haphazardly between the buildings, creating the backdrop for an upcoming Jack (Matthew Fox) flashback. Several little stores and restaurants on Fort Street were swarmed by street stalls selling everything from hot noodles to exotic dancers. A cluster of illuminated signs and colored lights were installed for the shoot, creating a magical, frenetic night scene. Other Thailand scenes were filmed at nearby Indigo restaurant and on the beach in Waimanalo.

AlbuquequeOn the run from the law, federal fugitive Kate (Evangeline Lilly) has turned up all over the place, criss-crossing the globe from Iowa to Australia. Among her crimes was a surreal bank robbery in a small New Mexico town (where the take was one tiny toy plane). “Whatever the Case May Be” (season one) showcased the unmistakable architectural style of First Hawaiian Bank’s Chinatown Branch. Its unique wooden, gated teller stations gave the scene a “Wild West” feel. Bonus trivia: The building housed Hawai‘i’s first bank, Bishop & Co., founded in 1858, with first-day deposits totaling $4,784.25.

HawaiiNo doubt to the chagrin of the Hawai‘i Visitors and Convention Bureau, Hawai‘i has played itself only once: the Kahala Hotel served as the venue for Jack “the Crying Surgeon” Shepherd’s wedding early in season one. If that wasn’t enough, it just figures that the gleaming $300-million Hawai‘i Convention Center is finally known the world over ... as an airport. You gotta admit, though—it’s perfectly cast.

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